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The U.S. men’s basketball team in Paris might be its most talented since the Dream Team, but make no mistake: Gold at these Games will be earned, not given.
The global game: When the Americans begin their quest today for a fifth consecutive gold medal, they’ll do so against a historically talented field, indicative of the game’s global takeover. There were nine non-American NBA players when the Dream Team arrived in Barcelona. In Paris, there are 39.
Team USA leads the way with all 12 players hailing from the NBA, but Canada (10) and Australia (nine) aren’t far behind.
France (five), Germany (four), Serbia (four) and Spain (two) also have multiple NBA players, while Brazil, Greece, Japan, Puerto Rico and South Sudan have one each.
Meet Team USA: Headlining the roster are four former MVPs in LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid, who became an American citizen in 2022.
Anthony Davis, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton have made a combined 13 All-NBA teams and 22 All-Star teams.
Jrue Holiday, Bam Adebayo and Derrick White will make life very difficult on opposing offenses with a combined 13 All-Defensive teams.
Examining the field: It’s not just the quantity of foreign NBA players the Americans will have to contend with, it’s the quality. That includes perhaps the best player in the entire tournament, Nikola Jokić, who will lead Serbia against the U.S. today (11:15am ET, NBC).
Top 10 non-USA players:
Jokić (Serbia/Nuggets)
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece/Bucks)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada/Thunder)
Victor Wembanyama (France/Spurs)
Jamal Murray (Canada/Nuggets)
Rudy Gobert (France/Timberwolves)
Franz Wagner (Germany/Magic)
Bogdan Bogdanović (Serbia/Hawks)
Dennis Schröder (Germany/Nets)
R.J. Barrett (Canada/Raptors)
Dive deeper: The biggest threats to Team USA
Team USA’s first gold: Caeleb Dressel, Chris Guiliano, Jack Alexy and Hunter Armstrong won the Men’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay to earn Team USA’s first gold medal in Paris. It’s the eighth Olympic medal for Dressel all of them gold.
Titmus tops Ledecky: Australia’s Ariarne Titmus topped Katie Ledecky (bronze) and Canada’s Summer McIntosh (silver) in the “Race of the Century,” successfully defending her 400m Freestyle gold.
Nadal, Alcaraz win opener: Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz defeated Argentina’s Andrés Molteni and Maximo Gonzalez in the Spaniards’ first match together as doubles partners. And please, before you keep reading, take a look at this photo.
France stuns Fiji: France stunned two-time defending champion Fiji in the Men’s Rugby Sevens Final, giving the hosts their first gold medal of these Games and handing Fiji their first ever loss in Olympics men’s rugby sevens (17-1).
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Athlete spotlight: Simone Biles, the undisputed gymnastics GOAT, is seeking redemption in Paris after a bout of the “twisties” forced her to drop out of multiple events three years ago in Tokyo.
Chasing history: The seven-time Olympic medalist (4 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze) is one away from surpassing Shannon Miller to become America’s most decorated Olympic gymnast.
With one gold, the 27-year-old will smash Aly Raisman’s record (22) as the oldest U.S. gymnast to stand atop the podium.
With two golds, she’ll pass Anton Heida for the most of any American gymnast (he won five, all at the 1904 Games).
Live update: Team USA’s qualifiers just concluded, and Biles shook off an early injury scare to deliver incredible performances on all four apparatuses (Beam, Floor, Vault, Uneven Bars)
What to watch: Biles qualified for the Individual All-Around Final alongside Suni Lee, who won gold in that event in Tokyo. And Biles’ scores across the board should be good enough to qualify her for every apparatus final, too.
Biles and Lee are joined on Team USA by two returning Olympians (Jordan Chiles and Jade Carey) and 16-year-old Hezly Rivera the youngest member of the entire American delegation.
And keep an eye on Biles in the uneven bars later in these Games: She submitted an original skill that will become the sixth to bear her name if she successfully completes it.
More athletes in action:
Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes: The beach volleyball duo won consecutive NCAA titles at USC (2016-17), but parted ways before Tokyo, where neither medaled. Now they’ve reunited.
Lee Kiefer and Gerek Meinhardt: The married couple are both contenders in foil, one of fencing’s three disciplines. Kiefer will look to defend her gold medal today, while Meinhardt goes for a third straight medal beginning tomorrow.
Team USA: News | Athletes | Shop
Follow along at TeamUSA.com and @TeamUSA on social media.
Full medal count.
The USWNT is almost always ranked higher than its opponent. That’s not the case today as the Americans (world No. 5) take on Germany (No. 4) in Marseille.
Featured events:
️ Women’s Soccer: USA vs. Germany (3pm ET, USA) One of six group stage matches.
Men’s Basketball: USA vs. Serbia (11:15am, NBC) Joel Embiid vs. Nikola Jokić should be electric.
Swimming: Three medal events (2:30pm, NBC) Men’s 400m IM, Women’s 100m Butterfly, Men’s 100m Breaststroke.
Surfing: Women’s Round 2 (1pm, Peacock); Men’s Round 2 (5:45pm, Peacock)
Medal events:
️ Women’s Mountain Bike: Cross-Country (8am, Peacock)
Judo: Women’s 52k and Men’s 66kg (10am, Peacock)
Women’s Skateboarding: Street Final (11am, CNBC)
Women’s Team Archery: Gold Medal Match (11:11am, USA)
Women’s Canoeing: Kayak Slalom Final (11:35am, USA)
Fencing: Women’s Foil and Men’s Épée (3:45pm, CNBC)
Non-medal events: Badminton, Beach Volleyball, Boxing, Handball, Hockey, Rugby, Sailing, Shooting, Table Tennis, Tennis, Volleyball, Water Polo, Womens Basketball.
Primetime on NBC: Women’s Gymnastics Qualifications (7pm), Men’s 400m IM Final and Men’s 100m Breaststroke Final (8pm).
For a complete schedule, click here.
At the heart of the doping saga looming over the Paris Olympics is a mystery that might never be solved, writes Yahoo Sports’ Henry Bushnell.
The saga, explained: In 2021, 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned substance called trimetazidine (TMZ) a heart medication that can boost endurance. Over two months later, the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) privately reported the positives to World Aquatics and later to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
CHINADA did not, however, publicly disclose the positives and provisionally suspend the 23 swimmers, as WADA rules require. Instead, it commissioned an investigation, which concluded that they must have inadvertently ingested TMZ.
WADA, despite doubts raised internally by its own top scientists, chose not to challenge CHINADA’s conclusion. Its leaders never even mentioned the case to the WADA executive committee. The positives, therefore, stayed hidden for three years.
When the New York Times and German broadcaster ARD uncovered them in April, the revelations led to a spat between USADA and WADA, legal threats, and now a U.S. Department of Justice probe.
What they’re saying: The scandal lingers, and the opacity has fed distrust. Asked Thursday if authorities have given him confidence that the sport is clean, U.S. star Caeleb Dressel gave a blunt answer: “No. No, not really.”
What to watch: Zhang Yufei, one of the Chinese swimmers who tested positive, will compete in the 100 butterfly final today.
Gorgeous backdrop: Sorry, Rose Bowl. We’ve found a better sunset. The Eiffel Tower beach volleyball stadium is the greatest view in sports, and there’s no close second.
Spying scandal update: FIFA has docked six points from Canada’s women’s soccer team, which is the equivalent of two wins, and banned their head coach for a year. U.S. Soccer has apparently been aware of Canada’s drone spying incidents for years.
RIP, Lionel: Samoan boxing coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito died of natural causes on Friday in the Olympic Village. He was 60.
Question: What is the most populous country to never win an Olympic medal?
Hint: Asia.
Answer at the bottom.
️ Big Apple moves: Both New York teams added lefty outfielders ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, with the Yankees landing center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. from the Marlins and the Mets acquiring left fielder Jesse Winker from the Nationals.
Plus:
️ Mets RHP Kodai Senga (calf) likely done for regular season after one start
️ Trevor Gutschewski, 17, wins U.S. Junior Amateur, earning spot in 2025 U.S. Open
Charles Leclerc takes Belgian GP pole after Verstappen penalized
Claressa Shields (15-0, 3 KOs) knocked out Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse to claim heavyweight and light heavyweight titles
See what else is trending on Yahoo Sports.
Trivia answer: Bangladesh (173 million people, eighth-most populated country in the world)
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